The Other Side: A Second Chance

"Wrong!" Alexander scolded me, and being startled, I yelped and dropped the water I had levitated in the air to the ground. "Your cadence isn't in the correct tone; your stance is too relaxed." He huffed and then recreated the proper stance as he parted his legs slightly, straightened his old back, and began to recite the incantation.

"By the currents deep and wide, let water's fury be my guide. With fluid grace and power thrash, unleash now the Water Lash!"

In front of us both, beneath the canopy tent pitched at the edge of the military encampment, was a table, and on that table was a jug full of water, which Alexander began to bend and lift out of it as if the water were pouring upwards. He spun and twirled the water in the air before viciously whipping it towards a target dummy on the far end of the canopy. As demonstrated before, the water cut through the canvas dummy, ripping its chest open like one of those diamond cutters I saw online.

My eyes widened, and I gulped as Alexander smiled at me, grabbed the nearby pitcher, and poured more water into the jug. "Your stance and speaking cadence are very important, Squirt," he said, referring to me by my impromptu nickname. "It allows your ether to travel more freely through one's form, making it easier to manipulate and control."

I nodded. "I-I thought it was all based on emotion."

Alexander stroked his beard and nodded. "Emotion plays an equal role. Keeping your mind and thoughts in check, as well as having a healthy posture, will allow one to have full control. As the years go by and you become more relaxed and capable, then you can start slacking." He joked. "But for now, Squirt, you are puny. Meek. You cannot afford to be lackadaisical. Now. Try again."

I took a deep breath and widened my stance out a bit—suddenly, I felt his staff hook around my foot and yank my legs out further, causing me to squeak and flail my arms as I tried to keep my balance.

"Wider. Your stance is too condensed," Alexander said sternly, and I gulped and nodded.

I kept my legs apart further out. I straightened my back and closed my eyes as I began to concentrate. With a deep breath, I began to mutter the incantation, which he immediately interrupted.

"Louder. You must be more pronounced with your vocalization." I blinked.

"Wh-what if a bad guy hears me, though?" I asked softly.

"God forbid you must speak an incantation out loud when battling an opponent. Squirt, war mages are trained to cast their spells chantless." Alexander leaned toward me on his staff.

I blinked. "Then why are you training me on this water spell?" I cocked my head, and Alexander cocked an eyebrow.

"You dare question your master, Squirt?" He frowned and sighed as I muttered an apology. "We are practicing your concentration; that is why. The spell you cast this morning in the field was an anomalous case of you having no control. Normally spells fail when such an event occurs, yet you somehow siphoned more magic into a simple mote to the point that it might've been an astral tier spell."

"Really?" I asked, and Alexander chuckled.

"Yes, and being such a meek little child like yourself, that is immensely dangerous." He sighed. "That is why we're playing with water. So that you don't go and blow everyone else up and yourself when the Colonel throws your puny life away on this special operation."

Ouch. I frowned.

"Now." He gestured to the water. "Try again."

I took a deep breath and nodded as I once again resumed the position. I focused my attention on the jug of water in front of me and then closed my eyes. Taking a deep breath, I tried to focus on nothing but my breathing and the water within the jug. Take a deep breath in, hold it for a second, then release, and repeat. Around me, the world seemed to grow quiet, and my mind stilled as, within my core, I felt well within me begin to bubble with magic.

"Excellent," Alexander praised as he moved around me, his voice sounding distant. "Your form is almost perfect. Now, begin the incantation."

Another deep breath in, and then out. "By the currents deep and wide, let water's fury be my guide." I started calmly as the magic within me swirled as I held my wand out towards the jug. The pleasurable sensations caused me to shiver ever so slightly.

"Do not let the magic overtake you, Squirt." Alexander's distant voice called to me. "Remain focused on the task."

As the energy began to grow within me, I could feel the magic spreading throughout every inch of my body, yet a large portion of it surged up my arm. Like lightning passing through a metal rod, it traveled towards my wand. Taking in another sharp breath, I continued the incantation.

"With fluid grace and power thrash, unleash now the Water Lash!" My eyes opened, and I saw the tip of my ruby wand unleash a blue and red flash as the magic exploded within me. Goosebumps formed along my arms and neck, and I bit my lower lip as the energy continued to pump from my body into the wand and the jug began to rattle and bubble.

"Focus, keep focusing!" Alexander urged me. "You're losing concentration. Still your mind!"

I bit my lower lip some more and took in a couple of deep breaths as the vibrating jug began to slow, and I imagined the water lifting out of the jug. With a flick of my wrist, I pointed my wand upwards, as if gravity had shut off. Water began to stream upwards out of the jug.

"Excellent, a bit rusty, but you have it." The old wizard said this as he stepped around the table in front of me, stroking his beard. "See if you can make it dance, Squirt." He smirked at me.

God, would you stop calling me that? I resisted the urge to sigh and tried to do as he asked.

I flicked my wrist once more and tried to concentrate on the water flowing into the air, swirling around like a liquid snake. The magic within me continued to pump into my wand, like a stream of its own, directly into it before being transferred to the water that I continued to swirl around the air.

Yet I could tell this essence wasn't infinite. With each passing second, I caused the water to fly around above Alexander and me. I could feel the strain beginning to take hold like I had some kind of invisible mana bar. The spell fatigue began to hit me harder than it had before.

Dammit, I'm feeling tired. Is this because I've been concentrating on this for so long? I grimaced as the water began to falter in the air.

"Yes," the voice said in my head. "The longer you remain concentrated on a spell, the more ether you pour into it. No spell can be held indefinitely by one person; eventually, even a god can run out of energy unless assisted by an outside force."

Alexander nodded his head as he finished circling the table and stood beside me. "You're doing very well." He praised me again. "For a novice, you've kept this up longer than I had anticipated." He nodded. "Now. Lash out at the dummy and put as much force into it as you can. Unleash the pent-up urge inside of you. Feel your anger infused with your magic and attack!"

Okay, Palpatine! I smirked and focused on the dummy, and in my mind, I imagined one of those Rusivite fighting machines. I thought about my mother being taken by those people in the streets of Kassel, and I snarled and slashed at the air with my wand.

The water above shot through the air, forming a tight string as it lashed out at the dummy, and like water through a diamond, it sliced through the head of the dummy and sent it tumbling to the floor, decapitating it.

I gasped and dropped to my knees. The energy of doing such an attack practically sucked the air from my lungs. Alexander's eyes widened, and a smile appeared on his lips.

"Well then. That was unexpected," he said slowly as the sound of someone clapping caused our heads to turn to look over our shoulders.

Behind us, standing at the edge of the canopy, was none other than Colonel Hass, her servant Shelia, and two of her guards. The red-haired woman smiled at us as she brushed her bangs aside, fixed her peak cap on top of her head, and stepped towards us.

"Impressive," she said softly as she eyed me and then the decapitated dummy. "I see Master Mihaljević has caught the one who tormented my camp."

My eyes widened, and a deep blush appeared on my cheeks. "Sorry." I muttered.

"Don't be." The woman waved her hand to the side dismissively. "You've only fueled my resolve."

Alexander bowed slightly. "Good morning, Elin," he said softly. "After the sky ignited in flames, I decided to seek out the little squirt myself." He smiled.

"Can you stop calling me that?" I whined, and the man scoffed and laughed.

"Only when you can prove to me you have grown beyond such a title." He teased me and stroked his beard as I huffed.

Colonel Hass smirked and looked at me. "So, you know more than you let on, I take it?"

She asked me, and before I could answer, Alexander spoke. "It isn't that she knows more, Elin; from what I've observed, it's that she doesn't know what she's capable of. Without a proper spiritest I won't know her exact power, so we've been conducting small concentration trials, and I must say, Squirt here possesses a deep, deep Well."

So, there's more to these tests than just me being able to concentrate, eh? I thought to myself as I looked up at the old man.

"Luna here." He pointed to me, finally using my real name. "From what we saw earlier with the firebomb and what happened just now, she could easily rival the power of an Astral Sorcerer or even an Ethereal Archon if given time to cultivate." Alexander explained excitedly as he approached the Colonel, still gesturing towards me.

Ethereal Archon?! Wasn't that my mother's title? My eyes widened as I glanced between the two.

The Colonel glanced at me, her steely blue eyes practically burning holes into me as I shifted nervously under her gaze. After a moment, her eyes flicked back toward Alexander. "How long would that take?"

Alexander looked at her dumbfoundedly, then scoffed. "Years, decades… She's impressive, but she's still a child. Her spells, while powerful, lack control. Without proper training, she'd be a liability."

"Hey!" I huffed. "I'm right here!"

"Shush, Squirt." Alexander held a finger to me.

Mother fucker!

"It's harsh but true. This girl holds great potential, Elin. Yet if I could provide my professional opinion—"

"I have no need for your opinion, Alexander." Hass's stone-cold gaze bore into his eyes. "I need this young girl taught. Specifically in the arts of healing and maybe some self-defense. Give or take two days, and we'll be on the offensive."

Alexander's eyes widened. "Tw-two days?! Are you stupid?" The Colonel's eyes widened as the guards behind her stepped forward, but she stopped them.

Holy shit, I thought. This old dude might be cool after all.

"Elin, I apologize for my harshness, but I stand by what I said. You must be absurd to think that you can take this youngster out in the field. Two days is not even enough time to train someone in a single whisper."

The Colonel's expression hardened once more, and she said, "I appreciate your concern, Master Mihaljević, but I stand by my instructions. Two days. I should not need to explain again why we are in such a rush," she said coldly.

The wizard grumbled under his breath and turned away from her. "Alright. I'll focus on such, but if this one here dies because of your attempt at glory, it is you who will have their blood and failed potential on your hands."

My eyes widened as I shifted back a bit from the two as they shot daggers at each other. I've never felt like such a third wheel in my life. I gulped as the Colonel turned to me.

"Luna, I can assure you that such a thing won't happen. Continue practicing with Alexander as much as you can. Listen to him, and I can assure you, come the third day, you'll be ready to reunite with your family." She then turned to Alexander and gave him a polite bow. "Master Mihaljević, I thank you for your service. Have a good rest of your day."

Alexander merely muttered his departing words and came over to me as the Colonel and her entourage walked off. "Blasted jarheads. Only caring about the end result, yet it's like they never consider what it takes to reach it." He sighed.

I took a deep breath. "She's not entirely wrong, though," I said softly, and Alexander side-eyed me. "My family is most likely being held captive by the Rusivite's at the base where they've been taking people. Whatever they're doing there, people are dying. If I can just learn some healing spells, strong ones even, I can maybe help push the soldiers to rescue everyone." I smiled, hopefully, at the old man.

Alexander scoffed. "A noble thought, yet that's merely that. A thought. Putting such a plan to task is obscene. Healing magic is something that must be nurtured and grown over time; one does not merely just… pick up on it."

I beg to differ. I thought, but I kept my mouth shut.

"But," Alexander continued, "if Elin believes, you can do it. Then I'll put my trust in her, as much as I don't want to." He sighed once more. "How are you feeling?" He asked me.

"Uh… okay." I glanced over myself as if checking for any wounds. "I'm a little tired after the spell, yet I already feel a bit better." I smiled at him.

The old man nodded, adjusted his bowl hat, and said, "Excellent. Follow me." He gestured for me to come with him as he grabbed a few items off the table he had stored earlier. A loki pipe and what looked to be a fancy flip lighter.

"Where are we going?" I asked curiously.

"Into the deep end, Squirt." That was all he said as he stuck the pipe in his mouth and lit it.

 

---

 

Blood, vomit, and humanoid waste were all I smelled in the hospital as I covered my mouth and nose. I could hardly hear myself think over the sounds of men and women sobbing and screaming as one man near the end of the tent was having his leg amputated. Nurses and doctors ran back and forth from patient to patient as a few women wearing what looked to be clerical garbs stood amongst them.

One woman in particular was calling out, "I need a diamond! A diamond! Bloody hell, where did all the diamonds go?"

To which another replied. "Celena, we are all out. We went through them yesterday."

"Blasted all!" The older-looking priestess cursed as she turned to see Alexander and me standing at the front. The woman was a dark-skinned elf with beautiful hazel-colored eyes and an immaculate form. Her once-white garbs were stained with blood and vomit, yet around her neck, I saw the symbol of the life tree. The symbol of Slyondra.

She scowled upon seeing the wizard and said, "Apologies, Master Mihaljević, but as you can see." She gestured to the few dozen wounded men and women. "We're a bit busy."

Alexander huffed his pipe one last time before dumping the ashes onto the wet mud and stomping it out. He then stowed his pipe away casually and said, "I see that, and hopefully, I'm here to help." He reached into his cloak and rummaged around it for a second before producing a large, shiny diamond.

My eyes widened as he said, "It appears you need one of these." His eyes flicked to what looked to be a dying woman on the bed before her.

The priestess, who I heard was called Celena, relaxed a little before quickly motioning for us to come over to her. "Please, quickly, the woman here is passing."

Both Alexander and I quickly walked over to Celena and handed her the diamond. As Celena turned to the woman on the bed, my eyes widened when I noticed the elf laying their twitch, then stiffening, and her chest collapsing one last time. My heart began to race as the injured woman perished before my eyes, yet suddenly I felt Alexander's staff tap my side, and he leaned over.

"Pay attention." He whispered.

Quickly, Celena leaned over the woman with the large diamond in hand and pressed his point in between the deceased woman's breasts. With a deep breath, she placed both hands over it and began to speak an incantation.

"By Slyondra's grace, within the Current's call, in the realm of shadows, where spirits might fall, from the Darkest Ocean, where souls may dive, please resuscitate and let them thrive. From depths profound, where the currents sway. Hold back the soul from the darkest fray. Take from the Fisherman's hands; let life survive. Please resuscitate, and let them arrive. With gentle currents and whispers soft, before the darkest depths, we loft. In Slyondra's name, spare this soul's demise. Please resuscitate, and return them to life."

Celena repeated this incantation not once, but three times. Each time, the diamond between the woman's breasts began to sink through the fabric of her shirt and into her body. The light around it began to ripple and shake as if reality itself were destabilizing. Celena's eyes began to glow a bright white, and the air around her began to warm while a bright runic circle began to magically form around her and the bed.

My eyes widened even more as her incantation grew into a chorus as if multiple people began to join in with her, and abruptly, the diamond sank into the elven woman on the bed and vanished from sight, and all light ceased in a blink of an eye. At first, nothing seemed to happen. The priestess, Celena, bent over the woman, pressed her ear to her chest, and listened. Suddenly, the once-dead elf jerked to life, her back arching off the cot and her legs kicking out as she gasped, sputtered, and let off a choked sob.

I yelled and stumbled back as Alexander caught me another priestess rushed over to help Celena hold the elf down.

"It is okay! You're back, you're back!" They both told the sobbing woman.

"Wh--what's wrong?" I asked.

She had died, and I saw them bring her back. Someone was actually brought back to life in front of me!

"Nothing is wrong, but when one leaves the living realm," Alexander said to me, "it is hard to come back. Those who are resuscitated are known to have seen things that we living have not, nor could ever. That is, until we part."

I gulped. "A-And what's that?" I asked.

Alexander turned to look down at me, and in an emotionless tone, he said, "The Darkest Ocean."

The Darkest Ocean? I vaguely recall Isa and my mother telling me about this. The cycle of life and death. Everyone dies, and everyone is reborn. Like me, everyone has been reincarnated. Was my being reborn in this world normal?

"No." The voice responded, and I jerked a little in surprise.

Oh, you've been quiet for a bit.

"I've been merely listening and watching. But no, you are not normal. Reincarnation is all part of the cycle, yet even then, you are still an anomaly in this world."

Makes sense. Isa said I might be what's called "awakened" or something like that.

"Sort of… We can discuss more when we meet."

Alexander leaned over to me as the screaming, the revived woman began to calm as the priestesses cast another spell on her that seemed to put her to sleep. "Do you think you can learn that spell?" Alexander asked me.

I nervously fidgeted and looked up at him. "The sleep one or the life restoring one?"

"Resuscitate." He clarified.

My eyes widened. "I, uh, I don't know," I mumbled as Celena sighed and came over to us with a relaxed smile.

"Thank you, Alexander, I… I don't know how I would've reacted if we lost yet another one this morning." She sighed and wiped her brow.

Alexander smiled and gave her a polite nod. "I'm glad to have helped, though passing off diamonds is not the only reason I'm here." He patted me with his staff again. "I've come to you with my new and abrupt pupil, Squirt."

"Th-that's not my name!" I huffed and crossed my arms, and Celena smiled and chuckled as she crossed her arms beneath her ample bosom.

"And what is your name, little one?" She asked me as she knelt her beautiful face, less than a foot away from mine.

I blushed deeply. Oh God, why is she getting so close?!

I gulped. "My name is Luna, and I'm here to learn."

"Learn?" Celena blinked and brushed her dark, curly bangs out from in front of her eyes. She stood back up and looked at Alexander. "Why are you bringing her here to learn? This is no place for children."

Alexander smiled. "She's here to learn magic. Specifically, what you just did." He pointed to the revived woman on the cot.

Celena's eyes widened. "Excuse me? Is this another one of your pointless pranks?"

Alexander shook his head. "No, I'm still planning on the one for today."

Celena groaned and shook her head. "You can't be serious."

Alexander shook his head as he pulled me out of the way of a few doctors. "Nope. Colonel's orders; don't believe me, ask her." He smirked. "Little Luna here is a bit of a prodigy, it seems, when it comes to magic."

"I can cast rejuvenate!" I exclaimed and beamed proudly. "And with no scroll needed!"

Everyone went silent.

I blinked and glanced around, and I saw doctors and nurses glancing at me and the other two clerics as well.

"You can… what?" Celena asked me softly. "For real?"

I gulped and nodded. "Yep."

Alexander laughed softly and said, "Yep. She can, but you see, Celena, we're on a bit of a time crunch—"

"Demonstrate for us," Celena interrupted. "Corporal Baxter right behind you is in need of serious treatment." She pointed to a halfling man whose torso seemed to be riddled with shrapnel wounds. "If you can truly cast the spell, please try and heal him."

Alexander sighed and glanced down at me. "Well then, Squirt. It seems you spoke a bit too soon." He nodded towards the halfling.

I nodded, not too bothered by it. There's nothing wrong with helping people, as long as I can get what I need.

"The issue is time. Now that these folk know you can heal without issue, your training may be interrupted." The voice explained.

Ah shit, I didn't think of that.

"No. No, you didn't."

Moving over to the injured halfling, who seemed to be barely conscious, I gulped and said, "Hello. My name is Luna, I-I will be… your little doctor. I guess. I'm going to touch you." I said it awkwardly to the man, who probably couldn't hear me as I placed both hands on him.

As my small hands pressed on his side, the halfling winced and groaned as I closed my eyes and began to do my best to concentrate on the sounds of the injured. Taking a couple of deep breaths, I began to recite the incantation for rejuvenation. Within me, the magic came to life as the ground around me glowed with green light and flying pixies I began to focus my energy on sealing the wounds and healing him.

As I finished the incantation and opened my eyes, I watched as the pieces of metal and debris lodged in his body were magically plucked out by unseen hands before every wound, including those I hadn't focused on, began to magically close. His bruises faded, and strangely of all, the gray hairs I saw on his head began to change to brown.

After a few moments, the spell began to fade. The halfling, named Baxter, opened his eyes. "Th-the pain…" He said it softly. "I-it's gone." He shifted a bit and sat up despite a few doctors rushing over to stop him, though I held up my small hands to them.

"N-No need! He'll feel sore," I said, "but he's healed."

"I-I thought I was a goner, bu-but you…" He looked at me, his blue eyes widening as he looked me up and down. "You saved me?" He asked me, shocked, presumably because I was a child.

Feeling on the spot, I blushed and silently nodded.

Suddenly, I was assaulted at every angle. Doctors and nurses were calling for me to treat the other wounded, and as I glanced back at Alexander, I merely saw him shaking his head with a sigh.

I really kicked the hornet's nest.